Flash Flood in Louisiana, June 27, 2002

Name: Flash Flood in Louisiana, June 27, 2002
Start: 2002-06-27T09:00
End: 2002-06-27T12:00
Location: Louisiana

June 27, 2002 · NWS LCH · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Between three and six inches of rain fell across Lake Charles, resulting in flooding in some businesses and homes. Some streets had over a foot of water on them.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $50,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS LCH wrote it up.

Between three and six inches of rain fell across Lake Charles, resulting in flooding in some businesses and homes. Some streets had over a foot of water on them.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Lake Charles, LA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 27, 8:54 AM CST, 6 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 27, 8:54 AM CST, 6 minutes before

SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA AND SOUTHEAST TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
954 AM CDT THU JUN 27 2002

LCH 12Z RAOB SATURATED WITH PW OF 2.3 INCHES...ALSO QUITE UNSTABLE
WITH A K-INDEX OF 39. MSTR CHANL/IR/LTG DATA SHOW A TRAIN OF
CONVECTION INBOUND FROM THE TX COASTAL WATERS INTO NEARLY THE ENTIRE
FCST AREA WITH THE EXCEPTION OF INTERIOR SE TX. HAVE RECIEVED MANY
REPORTS OF LOCAL FLOODING IN CALCASIEU PARISH AND WILL MONITOR FOR
MORE FFWS. LATEST 3 HR POE PRECIP INDICATES NEARLY 5 INCHES OF
RAIN HAS FALLEN NW OF MOSS BLUFF WITH NEARLY 3 INCHES SOUTH OF
VINTON SINCE 645 AM. LCH RADAR SHOWING INCH AN HOUR RATES TRAINING
INTO SRN CAMERON PARISH. POE RADAR ALSO SHOWING 1.5 INCH/HR RATES
INTO ERN CAMERON PARISH. MAIN PROBLEM REMAINS CALCASIEU WHERE
PREVIOUS RAINS HAVE SATURATED AREAS.

PREV FCST LOOKS GOOD...WILL ONLY TWEAK POPS UP FOR LFT TO 90% AS
AREA SHIFTS EAST...AND LWR TEMPS A BIT FOR LFT/AEX DUE TO CLD COVER
AND RAIN COOLED AIR.

.LCH...FFW CALCASIEU PARISH TIL 11 AM. LAC019.
       ESF RIVER FLOOD WATCH LWR CALCASIEU RIVER
           TIL LATE FRI LAC019.
       SMW SPECIAL MARINE WARNING TIL 1030 AM
           INNER COASTAL ZNS GMZ450-455.

.UPDATED NUMBERS...
     TDY   FRI   SAT  T F S
BPT 84/73 84/73 86/73 856353
LCH 83/72 85/73 86/73 856353
LFT 84/72 85/72 87/72 956353
AEX 83/70 86/71 88/71 846353

11-SWEENEY

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jun 27, 7:45 AM CST, 1 hour 15 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES,LA
845 AM CDT THU JUN 27 2002

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0845 AM    LAKE CHARLES              LA   HEAVY RAIN
06/27/02   CALCASIEU                      TRUCK STALLED ON KIRKMAN
                                          STREET WITH WATER OVER
                                          HUBCAPS

FN

Local storm report, Jun 27, 8:07 AM CST, 53 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES,LA
0907 AM CDT THU JUN 27 2002

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0905 AM    LAKE CHARLES              LA   HEAVY RAIN
06/27/02   CALCASIEU                      LAKE SHORE DRIVE IMPASSIBLE
                                          DUE TO WATER UP TO CAR DOORS.

0905 AM    LAKE CHARLES              LA   HEAVY RAIN
06/27/02   CALCASIEU                      ROUTE 66 AT OLD SPANISH TRAIL
                                          CLOSED DUE TO HIGH WATER.

0905 AM    LAKE CHARLES              LA   HEAVY RAIN
06/27/02   CALCASIEU                      MILLER AVE AND EDGERLY ROADS
                                          HAVE HIGH WATER OVER THEM

FN

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Calcasieu

When: June 27, 9:00 AM CST to 12:00 PM CST
Where: Calcasieu County, Lake Charles
Property damage: $50,000
Reported by: AIRPLANE PILOT
Coordinates: 30.229, -93.358 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Flash Flood: Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Louisiana in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Louisiana, June 2002

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5302150.